Line in the Sand
by NoSaviour
Summary: There's a line they cannot cross… "There must be something more to him!" Lights danced wildly in Ino's eyes. "Don't say that about Uchiha-sensei! He's a respectable man, Ino!" I retorted back. I found out how wrong I was.
1. In which Sakura discovers

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

**Line in the Sand:** There's a line they cannot cross… "There must be something more to him!" Lights danced wildly in Ino's eyes. "Don't say that about Uchiha-sensei! He's a respectable man, Ino!" I retorted back. I found out how wrong I was.

* * *

**Line in the Sand**

1. Discovery

_(in which Sakura discovers)_

* * *

"So, give me your schedule, Sakura!" Ino's hands snatched the green paper from me, and her eyes searched wildly through my list of courses.

A sharp intake of her breath sounded as her hands squeezed with delight. "You have English with Uchiha-sensei!"

"So?"

"He's the hottest teacher!"

I could only roll my eyes.

"Really, Ino?" I snatched back my schedule and delicately slid into my bag. "Don't tell me you're going after a _teacher_?"

She smirked haughtily. "There's nothing wrong with that." Her blue eyes turned wistful, focusing on something past me, past the school walls, and past the sky… She was definitely in her dream world.

"You know…" I muttered with a sigh. "A student and a teacher… that's so _wrong._"

"Hmph!" Ino snapped back to reality and sneered at my face. "Famous last words, Sakura. Just see how hot Uchiha-sensei is and you'll be falling all over him."

Deliberately ignoring Ino, I left for my first class, History. Asuma-sensei was teaching this and my heart thumped a little quicker in anticipation for his classes. So far, this year was looking great. I had Asuma-sensei for Social Studies last year and I absolutely loved his teaching.

When I got there, I was one of the first few people to enter his class on the first day of school. _Ah._ A joyful sigh sounded in my heart; I could pick any seat I wanted.

My eyes hurriedly inspected the class and then I walked up to a desk at the front. Ino would definitely call me a nerd for sitting here, but I didn't care. History with Asuma-sensei was a class I had to devote full attention to.

Gingerly, I put my bag down, and took out a dull-red binder that only contained fresh sheets of lined paper. I watched as Asuma-sensei walked in, and the rest of the class followed in before the bell rang.

A brown-haired girl slumped down to sit beside me, and when I turned to look, I was greeted with a familiar face.

"Tenten!"

"Hey, Sakura," Tenten smiled in acknowledgment. We both enjoyed Asuma-sensei's classes, so I highly valued her opinions.

She took out the green schedule from her binder and pushed it towards me. Smiling, I took my own out and switched it with hers.

"Oh?" Tenten's eyebrows lifted in small surprise and perhaps…

"You have English with Uchiha-sensei," she noted, and I eyed her in suspicion. In my mind, I dared her to go on like Ino had, about how _hot_ he was. Instead, she sighed a little dramatically and muttered, "Lucky…"

Hm? Was that envy?

My green eyes stared at her questioningly, probing at her silently to explain.

"Actually, I had Uchiha-sensei last year, and he's a great teacher," Tenten leaned slightly closer and quickly peered over at Asuma-sensei.

That meant Uchiha-sensei was a respectful teacher, like Asuma-sensei, in Tenten's opinion.

"Hm…" I replied, trying to formulate a conclusion. For Ino, Uchiha-sensei was a young, hot teacher, while for Tenten, he was a great, respectful one.

Well, I had the next class to find out.

"Hello, class," Asuma-sensei began, and my attention focused wholly on him for the remainder of this first class.

. . .

A class of eighty-minutes later, I packed up my books and headed out, a silly grin spread on my face. It was only the first day of school, and Asuma-sensei wasted no time to start teaching! Of course, most students groaned a complaint, but I was not like most students.

My feet skipped lightly to my next class, English.

English with Uchiha-sensei... Hm.

Before I could get into the class early and get the best seat, a crowd of girls were blocking the doorway. There was that same guy, dark-haired and tall, who always seemed to be crowded by girls. I always made sure to ignore these types of guys. They brought me trouble.

I squeezed past the mob, an annoyed "Excuse me!" daring the girls to push away. I thought they'd ignore me, but instead, they swarmed away from me.

"Ohh it's that nerd with pink hair!"

I twitched. Was that Karin?

I ignored them and silently walked in, before hearing the guy speak, "Now, now girls, I have a class to teach."

"Aww, but Uchiha-sensei! I brought some home-made cookies!" One of the girls whined, but I froze mid-step.

That guy? _He _was the "Uchiha-sensei?"

You've got to be kidding me.

Broken from the spell of shock, I stomped into the class and headed straight to the back of the class. There was no way_ that_ kind of guy could teach!

. . .

I had been in for a surprise.

For one thing, Ino _and_ Tenten was right.

And for another, I came to respect Uchiha-sensei.

I couldn't switch the seats anymore, but I could still fully devote my attention to him even in the back of the class, so it was okay. What I just couldn't believe was that he had earned _my _respect.

He was a great teacher.

As if that couldn't be any better, he was so nice to all the girls too, even though they were being so annoying. He smiled politely to everyone and never once did he, quite slyly, accept any of the girls' feelings. And perhaps, because of this, all the girls approached him fully aware that he would never accept their feelings.

Making his position clear yet inflicting as little damage as possible to the high school girls while teaching passionately really earned my respect.

My school year was definitely looking to a great start.

* * *

It was already half-way through the year, and Ino still annoyed me about Uchiha-sensei.

"He's just so mysterious, don't you think?" The florescent lights caught in her eyes.

I sighed. "Ino, I admit he's a really great teacher, but I still hold my opinion."

"Which is?"

I rolled my eyes. She clearly knew what I meant but she persisted to annoy me. "A teacher and a student! That's wrong!"

"You know what I think?" My blonde friend began in a contemplative gesture.

"There must be something more to him!" Lights danced wildly in Ino's eyes.

"Don't say that about Uchiha-sensei! He's a respectable man, Ino!" I retorted back.

"Aww, Sakura. You're no fun." She made a face and stuck out her tongue, but at this point, I didn't really care. In fact, if she lost her interest in daydreaming about Uchiha-sensei and annoying me along with that, I would gladly do anything.

"Well, Sakura, have fun." There was almost a defeated sigh as she said this. She pouted. "At least you're in his class. I'm _so_ jealous."

"Yep, you've definitely made that clear." I bit into my sandwich when I caught Uchiha-sensei walking past me in the corner of my eyes.

"Hello, Sakura." The dark-haired teacher waved at me politely.

I yanked my sandwich out of my mouth and waved back at him.

"Hello, Uchiha-sensei,"

Once he was gone, Ino came alive with a newfound light in her eyes, which read, _'I told you so!'_

"Ino…" I devoured the last of my sandwiches rather quickly as I mumbled, "Saying hi to a teacher is _not_ a big deal."

And on cue, as if to prove my point, Asuma-sensei walked past the cafeteria and I gave a little wave and called out, "Hello, Asuma-sensei," to which he chuckled and gave me his own little wave.

* * *

The school year had passed by quickly, and it was already the exam week at the end of the school year. Next year was my graduating year, so I really needed to keep up my grades.

I also planned to volunteer at a hospital during the summer, but I needed two reference letters. Perhaps once the exams were over, I could ask Asuma-sensei and Uchiha-sensei to write me one.

Yes, that would be perfect.

Singing a little joyful tune, I pulled out my Physics textbook to the page I had stopped studying last night. But then my mind flooded with thoughts.

If they write me a reference letter, shouldn't I, at the very least, write them a thank-you card?

"Hmm…" I played around with my pencil and after some thinking, I pulled out my laptop.

For a few minutes, I searched the Internet for any thank-you gifts I should get for my teachers. However, some blogs suggested that I don't get them gift cards (for they may seem like bribes) or nothing expensive. In fact, it suggested, something homemade may be nice.

Well, I was only planning to give them a thank-you card after all. Maybe I should bake some cookies?

Yes, that's what I'll do.

I shut my textbook closed, and with sudden determination, headed downstairs to the kitchen for some serious baking.

. . .

A sweet aroma filled the kitchen and I opened the oven to find my chocolate chip cookies. My heart sank upon seeing most of them burnt on the edges.

Sighing, I delicately picked the best ones and slid into two clear-wrap gift bags. I wanted to put in at least five cookies per bag, but I guess only three would have to suffice for now.

After gingerly putting the clear-wrapped cookies aside, I turned to face the dishes, the worst part of baking.

After half an hour of clearing up the kitchen as decently as possible, I snatched the two cookie bags and stormed into my room. Pushing the study books aside, I put down some cards that I had collected years prior.

"Hm…" My white fingers lightly touched each card and picked the best ones for Uchiha-sensei and Asuma-sensei. Then, taking out my special gel pen, I wrote out in pretty cursive letters on how thankful I was to have them as a teacher, and the wonderful school year I had on account of them.

The next day, after my Physics exam, I visited the two teachers and shyly gave my thank-you card and the bag of cookies. Both teachers accepted them gratefully, and when I asked if they could write a reference letter for me, they agreed heartily.

"Of course," Uchiha-sensei had said, "For my top student, Sakura, I will gladly write one for you." I explained the details of the volunteer work at the hospital, and he muttered thoughtfully, "Hmm… Hospital? That suits you very well, Sakura, I'm sure you'll do well."

There was a silly grin on my face when I walked out of his classroom.

. . .

A few days later, I walked into the school for the final time for my last exam: Pre-calculus.

Once I was finished with the exam and satisfied, I stepped out of the school building, but had to halt. It was raining.

I took out my phone and punched in the familiar digits. "Mom?" A muffled voice answered me back. "It's raining and I don't have an umbrella."

"Fine, Sakura, I'll come pick you up in five minutes," she promised.

Idly, I stood right outside the main school door, but my eyes were restless. I lazily turned from left to right to see if there was anything interesting so time would pass quickly.

On the far right, behind the school windows, I caught a shape of a black-haired man. That classroom must be my English class, which meant that the figure was Uchiha-sensei.

My lips twitched upwards and I suppressed a giggle. He was the last person to see on my last day of school. On the corner of my eyes, something on the ground caught my attention. My eyes drooped low and made out a fuzzy brown shape on the ground. Whatever it was, it was drenched with rain, appearing to be almost a muddy lump.

For a reason I can't fathom, my mind drifted to the chocolate cookies I had baked and given to Uchiha-sensei a few days ago. I was contemplating whether or not I should walk over to see if I was wrong, when Uchiha-sensei suddenly looked up.

Far away, I saw his face turned towards me. It was fuzzy, behind that window, but I was sure he was looking at me. My hands twitched to give a wave but shortly, the silent spell was broken by a honking of a car.

"Sakura!"

It was my mom. Rather reluctantly, I turned my gaze from the window, from Uchiha-sensei, and the curious brown lump on the ground outside.

When summer came, I forgot about everything and instead drained all my attention and energy to the hospital. The only time I was reminded of such rather odd incident was when I received the two reference letters by mail.

* * *

Summer was over in a flash, especially when one was so busy, and I soon found myself in the first day of school again.

The class schedule was printed in a blue sheet this time.

My heartbeat accelerated slightly with anticipation, excitement, and curiosity, all mingled together. Breathing in, I was just about to look at my schedule when the paper was snatched from me rather rudely.

A blonde girl stood before me.

Of course, who did I expect?

"Ino!" I gritted my teeth and reached for the paper, but I froze when she yelped out, "What! No fair, you have Uchiha-sensei _again_?"

"Hn," I scoffed indifferently, crossing my arms, and waited patiently for her to give my schedule back. Though, inside, I was rather _very_ impatient.

When she finally gave it back to me with a sigh, I read over my schedule and then with a, "Shoot!" I hurried to my first class.

English class. I needed to take a good seat (preferably at the front) this time!

Not to my surprise, the class was already buzzing with girls, but luckily, I got a front seat. I gave a winsome smile at Uchiha-sensei, who was attempting to politely get the girls off him.

* * *

It was already two months in, and we were studying the Poetry unit. Uchiha-sensei began with a poem titled, "To My Coy Mistress," and paused before reading on.

"So class," He said, as he looked up. "What can you make of the title?"

"Uh.. Coy!" A blonde idiot jumped in.

It was Naruto. I tried not to roll my eyes.

"Isn't that like, uh, sly?" He guessed, and everyone muttered in agreement.

"Actually," Uchiha-sensei explained, "Coy is when someone is…"

For the second he drifted off, his eyes cast down to mine.

"Appearing to be shy, when really, she isn't," he finished off.

I felt a pang of confusion crash within me. Had Uchiha-sensei just implied that I was coy?

For the rest of the class, as he read and explained the poem and other things, I got the feeling that every time he looked at me, he was stealing glances at me. And, every time he did, I met his strange stare daringly.

By the time I walked out of his class, my heart was feeling little flutters…

Suddenly, I froze in the hallway, as I was walking to my next class. Did I just feel… attraction – even if it was very, _very_ slight – towards Uchiha-sensei, a _teacher_?

One thing was for sure: if Ino found out, she would not stop annoying me for all eternity.

. . .

When school ended that day, I grudgingly made my way to my Chemistry class. My stupid partner had ruined our lab right before the bell rang, so after some pleading with the teacher, I was allowed to re-do it by myself some other time.

I glanced outside. The sky was darkening quicker than I had anticipated. After all, winter was soon approaching, but for some reason, my heart was queasy. Along with winter, I dreaded that something like a dark storm was approaching. It was just my instinct, but one so strong that I finished the lab as quick as I could to go home.

By the time I was finished, I hurried to the front door. Once I stepped outside, I breathed in the leafy autumn smells that were soon to turn to a wintry one. Most of the school lights were turned on, for the janitors had to do their job after school. One, in particular to the far right, had the lights turned off.

Curiously, I stepped toward the window to the English room. Usually, Uchiha-sensei had lights turned on, but a strange feeling pushed me forward.

I crept up to the window, and tentatively looked in. It was dark, alright, and there was nothing more. I breathed out a relief; I didn't know I had been feeling so tense.

Just as I was about to turn, I glimpsed a movement inside. My whole body drained of energy and a cold wave washed over me, but I forced myself to look in again.

Subtly, my eyes adjusted slightly to the dark and I made out a dark figure against another one.

It was Uchiha-sensei.

He was kissing a red-head I knew so well. Karin.

I backed away from the scene before me, and then, for the rest of the way home, I ran as fast as I could.

. . .

At home, I picked up the phone and punched in the numbers in a trance. When a perky voice answered me, I was brought back to reality again.

"What, Sakura?!" She hissed into the phone.

"Ino…"

Sensing some distress in my voice, she sighed. "Go on."

"This is just a _what if."_

"Ohhhhkay?" There was a suspicion to her voice, I could tell, but I had to go on.

"So… what if a teacher kissed a student?"

"Oh my gosh! I told you so, Sakura!" Ino screamed at the phone with a sneer. She must be jumping up and down in joy about now. "Student and teacher… They could work!"

And then, a horrified gasp filled the silence. "Wait, Sakura, don't tell me _you_ kissed a teacher?"

I groaned, "No…" Sometimes, I seriously wanted to hit this girl senseless, just so she won't be able to mutter another word.

"Okay, here's another what if," I continued unsurely.

I swear I could hear Ino nodding her head in anticipation.

"So… What if… _Uchiha-sensei_ kissed a student?"

There was a long silence.

And then came an erupted laughter.

"Sakura, Sakura," Ino snickered madly in between her words. "The things you say…"

"What?" I asked her sharply.

After some more series of laughter, Ino continued quite soberly this time, "I mean, think about it. Yeah, Uchiha-sensei is hot and all the girls want him – heck, I wouldn't be surprised if the _guys_ want him too. But, wait, that's not the point. The point is that it's just absurd!"

"What is?" I asked with a frown. I couldn't understand what I had seen earlier today, and I couldn't understand Ino.

"Uchiha-sensei will never make out with a student," Ino explained in annoyance. "Well… at least that's how he seems like."

I replied stupidly with a "huh?" It really was hard to understand where she was getting at.

"Well, Sakura, you get the best grades in class, but you can be so ditzy!" Ino dramatically stated, but continued anyway, "I mean that, _if_ Uchiha-sensei did make out with a student, then he's not really who he appears to be, is he?"

Oh, now I got it.

"He's just been putting on a façade all along, acting like a great, respectful teacher to everyone!" Ino clarified further. "Which also means he would actually be a sinister, evil, deceiving person in reality."

A cold chill ran through my spines, although I was hugging my pillow on my bed in my warm, safe room.

"But, Sakura, I simply refuse to believe that!" Ino's voice was slowly draining away from my senses as my mind envisioned Uchiha-sensei and Karin once again. Ino blabbered away in the meantime. "I mean, mysterious is okay, but not really that kind of deceiving wickedness, you know?"

"Hey, Sakura?"

His lips was attacking Karin's lips, like she was his prey, and his form was hunched over her, ready to devour her whole…

"Saaakura?"

Karin's hands were wildly ruffling his hair, and together, they entangled into a deep, entranced kiss…

"Geez, I'm hanging up, then!"

"Huh?" My mind snapped back to my room, but only the sound of a "do-do-do-do-" from the phone greeted me.

* * *

**Notes:** Uhm.. a rather random inspiration. Please tell me what you think! I'm not sure if this idea is any good...


	2. In which Sakura was losing

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

**Line in the Sand:** There's a line they cannot cross… "There must be something more to him!" Lights danced wildly in Ino's eyes. "Don't say that about Uchiha-sensei! He's a respectable man, Ino!" I retorted back. I found out how wrong I was.

* * *

**Line in the Sand**

2. Game

_(In which Sakura was losing)_

* * *

The next morning, I was very glad I didn't have English. However, as much as I wanted to avoid Uchiha-sensei for making me witness that _kiss_ yesterday, I couldn't. My locker was at the end of the English hallway; I had to pass his class _some _time.

When I looked through my bag, I sighed at my missing Calculus textbook. It was finally time I went to my locker, so I did. The lunch bell had just rung, so I knew that in the midst of the crowd of girls, hopefully, I would rush to my locker unseen. Although, that didn't matter, since he hadn't seen me yesterday.

Just as I was pulling my textbook out, I heard the annoying, shrill voice that yelled for the whole world to hear, "Hi, Uchiha-sensei!"

It was Karin but when I looked at what she was wearing, the textbook loosened in my grip and fell to the floor.

That red-headed girl was wearing a shirt that hung low, and there were… _kiss marks on her neck!_

The girls were giving her a look that spat out, _"Slut!"_ but their rage wasn't too high. Obviously, they had no idea it was their beloved Uchiha-sensei who had left such indecent marks.

Quickly, my eyes shot to Uchiha-sensei, who Karin had just addressed. She might as well have said, "_Look, sensei, at what you've done to me yesterday!"_

And then the most unexpected thing happened. A light red spread over Uchiha-sensei's pale face. He was blushing.

"Karin, I do think it would be more proper to wear…" He searched for the right words. "More decent clothes."

"Are you suggesting that I'm _indecent,_ Uchiha-sensei?" Karin pouted, and to hell with it if she thought she looked cute.

Perhaps I stared at the two a little too intensely; it certainly piqued my curiosity. While, Uchiha-sensei laughed nervously, and the girls whispered, "Aww he's so cute!"

"And so innocent!" Someone piped in, and I felt sick from knowing how wrong they were.

The black-haired man shifted a little uncomfortably then lightly patted Karin's head. There was a gentle smile as he advised, "Karin, living and _dressing _like a high school student is definitely not something you'll regret later on."

I would have respected his words had I not known it was a complete lie. Watching the girls staring at him wide-eyed with admiration sickened my heart. And to think that I used to be one of them…

I hastily picked up my book and rushed out of the English hallway, not bothering to glance back.

Later on that day, I pondered about Karin and Uchiha-sensei's reaction. It had been rather… amusing. Yes, the sly sensei may be deceiving all the innocent students, but perhaps I could… push him a little.

Just a little enough so that he won't know I know about his true self.

. . .

The next day, before heading to my English class, I pulled out my phone and hurriedly typed in my school's website. There, the staff list would show me what I was looking for.

"_Uchiha Sasuke,"_ the phone screen showed, along with his school email beside his name.

So his name is Sasuke… Quickly, I slipped the phone into my bag and rushed to my English class.

. . .

Towards the end of analyzing a short story, Uchiha-sensei turned to the class and asked, "Do you guys have any questions?"

My hands shot up in the air. My heart was accelerating, so quickly that it could almost burst, but I tried to keep calm.

"Yes, Sakura?"

"Sensei, can I call you by your first name?" I asked as sweetly and innocently as possible, looking up at him with puppy eyes.

Just as his mouth opened to say no, the class joined in. In fact, a certain idiot even went so far as to loudly yell out, "I agree with Sakura, Sasuke!"

Some girl in the back berated the stupid blonde, "Hey Naruto, that's rude! At least call him Sasuke-_san!"_

"Or Sasuke-_kun_." Another girl giggled.

My mouth twitched upwards as I watched Uchiha-sensei – no, cross that, I'll be calling him Sasuke-kun now! The startled teacher (Was he actually startled? Or was that an act, too?) put up his hand to try to quite the class, but his effort was all in vain.

Suddenly, the classroom door slid open to reveal our principal, Tsunade-san. She had something to hand to Uchiha-sensei but when she heard the class ruckus, she broke out into a grin.

To Uchiha-sensei's horror, and to everyone else's delight, the principal muttered, "Great to see you associate so closely with your students, Sasuke."

When she was gone, and the class noise died down the slightest bit, I raised my hand again. Uchi – Sasuke-kun avoided me like he hadn't seen my hand waving in the air, frantically. When the ever-annoying Naruto blurted out, "Sasuke, Sakura has another question!" Sasuke-kun could not but comply with him to listen to my next question.

In a weary voice, he asked, "Yes, Sakura?"

Tentatively, I let the question roll off my tongue, "What's your age… Sasuke-kun?"

Everyone erupted to a fit of mad laughter. In the midst of the crazy laughter and chatter, I suddenly felt cold and shaken. A thin smile spread on his lips as he whispered, "That's a secret, Sakura."

My instincts told me I was in trouble.

When the class bell rang, sensei lightly touched my shoulder. His hand was so cold that it sent a shiver down my spine. Or perhaps that was my imagination, that his hand was cold and that there seemed to be a dangerous aura spilling out from him.

"Sakura," he began, but before he could continue further, I brushed him off. Quickly stepping away in obvious hurry, I yelled, "Sorry, sensei, I'm busy!"

I thought I saw a smirk on his lips before I let myself disappear into the crowd.

As I made way to my next class, my heart sank at the realization that I had called him sensei, and not Sasuke-kun. That probably showed him how scared I was. I inhaled and exhaled slowly, but my racy heart was too difficult to calm down.

. . .

For the rest of the week, I could feel a curious glance from sensei frequently in the class, but nothing more happened. He did not touch my shoulder to call out, "Sakura." I wondered what he was about to say next, but I quickly disregarded that thought.

Perhaps I shouldn't have pushed him after all, and just stay low and act innocent.

I would be better off following my own advice, but on Friday, I made another mistake to push him on edge.

I had been talking about field trips with Ino the other night, because she was going to an _amusement park_ for her _Physics_ class! How those two related, I didn't know, but I was absolutely jealous. None of my teachers were keen about the idea of field trips, and foolishly, the thought that Uchiha-sensei may be my best bet crossed my mind.

So, in my English class on Friday, my hand shot in the air (For the final time, I hoped), and without thinking, I blurted out, "Are we going to go on any field trips?"

My questions always seemed to get the class as noisy as possible. Either way, I just annoyed sensei.

"Well, Sakura," He gave a dramatic sigh as he paused. "I would love to, but the curriculum does not give any space or time for such things…"

"But –" The class was taking over as everyone broke out into whines and pleads. This time, though, Uchiha-sensei's words were absolute.

"I'm sorry class, but a no is a no."

Before the class bell rang later, Uchiha-sensei sneaked up behind me and whispered, "Can you come after school today, Sakura?"

It was formulated as a question, but I knew better than to believe that.

It was definitely an order.

"Uh, sensei…" I laughed sheepishly as I tried to come up with a decent excuse.

Instead, he cut me off by saying, curiously, "I thought you wanted to call me Sasuke-kun?"

Again, formulated as a question, but it was most likely a command. Heat rose up to my cheeks in humiliation that this man was winning the game _I_ had set up.

"_Sensei_, I'll make sure to drop by after school, then." I pressed, giving him the satisfactory answer, and I stormed off.

. . .

By now, I was regretting it. Like hell. My eyes restlessly peeked at the clock that told me I had five minutes left, until the ultimate doom.

"Okay, class, so write down these questions for your homework," my Literature teacher informed us, and then glanced at the clock. "Hm, three minutes left. I suppose I could let you guys out a little early."

My heart sank and I panicked quietly. Gulping, I organized my notes and slid them into my bag in a slow, entranced motion.

My feet were heavy as I made way to the English hall. I stopped by my locker and packed all the books I need to bring home. When I was enveloped in my heavy coat, I felt slightly relieved. The coat felt like added protection, or security.

I was about to face the demon king, after all.

Demon king, not a bad name… My mind tried to make jokes but my insides were squirming with nervousness and soon the bell rang.

Reluctantly, I dragged my feet to the English room. To my horror, the class was empty save for a dark figure inside. That dark figure, obviously having noticed me, walked up to me as he explained, "I let them out a little early," like he could read my thoughts.

So he must have let his class earlier than three minutes ago, then.

"Come inside, Sakura." His voice was suddenly so loud in my ears, as if that was the only thing I was capable of hearing at the moment. My senses were heightened but I stepped inside unsurely anyway.

Gathering up my courage, I firmly asked like everything was normal, "What did you want, sensei?"

"So, Sakura," he smirked with blatant amusement. The classroom lights were dancing in his eyes one minute, and the next, the lights were off.

When did he?

"Can you tell me what you've witnessed a few days ago here?" He asked, and I only blankly looked at him in confusion.

What was he talking about?

"Uh, sensei, I don't know what you –"

Suddenly, his tall figure was looming over me.

"No, I think you know, Sakura."

"Sensei –"

"Sasuke-kun, isn't it?"

"Sasu –"

His hand suddenly flicked my chin up, and my green eyes stared into his black, entrancing ones. My eyes widened upon realizing what he was talking about.

"I think you witnessed me and… some girl," he whispered lightly, "in a situation something like _this_."

So he had seen me, after all!

I let out a whimper and silently berated myself for looking so weak, but I really felt powerless.

His pale face that was darkened to shadows inched toward me. I thought he was cold, but his breath was warm and I could feel his heat coming closer to me…

"_Sensei!" _I stressed sharply, and just as I barely felt his lips on mine, he pushed me away and laughed.

Heat rose to my face, and I was, for the first time, grateful for the darkness.

So, he knew that I knew. What do I have to lose, then?

I tried to catch his eyes that were craftily hidden in the darkness, but I spoke up confidently anyway, "Uchiha-sensei, don't you understand the situation you're in?"

"Hmm?" There must be a mocking smirk on his face, I was sure.

"What if I tell the school?" My hands squeezed the hem of my skirt; I was sweating so much from the tension.

There was a thoughtful silence that lingered for a moment, and then, "I don't mind."

A deep frown etched into my face. Of course he should mind! He could even get fired!

When he continued, I realized that he wasn't just playing with my mind after all. "Think about it, Sakura. You're the top student in my class."

At this point, my confusion was stronger than the unspoken tension.

"Will they believe you or will they believe me?" His icy voice sent another chill through my body. Of course, with his reputation as such a respectable teacher, "they" or more specifically the school, will never believe a student.

For a brief second, Ino's words flooded into my mind. _"Nobody takes a _pink-_haired girl seriously!"_ She had said, with an obvious sneer.

The colour of my hair wasn't relevant, I knew, but for the first time, I truly realized what a vulnerable position I was in.

Suddenly, the light flipped on, blinding my eyes for a few seconds. Through the window on the door, I spotted a janitor walking through the English hall.

"Sakura," Uchiha-sensei's voice was strangely warm this time, and I realized that he had merely put on his invisible "nice teacher" front again.

All this pretense lit a raging flame inside me. Gritting my teeth, I whispered, "Did you enjoy my cookies, sensei?"

The deceiving teacher before me stilled, creating yet another awkward silence around us.

"Cookies…?" His dark eyes seemed hazy, like he was trying to dig out a memory he couldn't remember. Suddenly, he lit up with an "Ah!"

By now, my hands had been folded into fists.

"Yes, your cookies," he mumbled, "They were… nice."

"Those were homemade." I shot him a glare.

"But you know, cookies… I don't like sweets."

My fists were trembling with silent anger. "So you never ate them!" I almost shouted, and he merely shrugged in reply.

My mind drifted to a few months prior, when I had spotted that curious lump of brown on the ground… That had been a lump of my cookies.

Something hot seared behind my eyes, and I blinked furiously to stop any start of tears. I didn't think I had been affected this much. Affected by _him_…

"Well, sensei." I forced on a haughty smirk. "It's alright if you happened to have thrown my cookies out the window. At least _Asuma-sensei_ appreciated them."

Something dangerous flickered in his eyes, his stupid façade threatening to fall apart. Was it the mention of Asuma-sensei? Was that what riled him up?

"Sakura." It was the most frightening combination; his coldest voice with his nice, warm smile. "Don't mention him ever again."

My insides were all frozen up and I wanted to run away as far away from him as possible. Instead, I questioned foolishly, "Why not?"

A cold glare shot to my eyes, but with an unknown bravery powering me, I chanted like a child, "Asuma-sensei."

His frown deepened.

"Asuma-sensei."

"Sakura," he hissed.

"Asume-se –"

In one swift motion, something thudded to the right of me. His pale hand had slapped the wall behind me.

My eyes widened with terror, and then with any courage I could muster, I started squeaking out the name of the boys in my class.

"N-naruto."

His gaze at me was turning into a curious one.

"Sh-shikamaru? Neji? Uh.. Kiba."

His eyebrows arched up, clearly confused by my words.

"Gaara-Kankuro-Choji-Shino –"

I stopped, feeling no need to continue further upon seeing a hint of a smile behind his lips.

So it was just Asuma-sensei I had to be careful not to mention. Not guys in general. No, of course not. How silly of me to perhaps assume that Uchiha-sensei might have been angry due to jealousy. No, that was really just stupid.

It was just Asuma-sensei.

Why? Instead, feeling tired from all the tension, I gave up.

"Sensei?"

"Hm?"

"I'm going home now."

"Yeah. See you, Sakura."

Before I skipped to the door and let myself out, I peeped in to ask one purely curious question.

"Why can't we go on a field trip?"

His lips twitched upwards, but before he could say anything, I paced outside without ever looking back.

Congratulations, Sakura, I told myself, for getting out of Hell _alive._

I stepped outside the school. There were a few students who were waiting to be picked up. I tiptoed to the window to the English class. Just as I was about to secretly peer in to see Uchiha-sensei's reaction after my leave, a tap sounded on the window.

I jumped, but froze upon seeing the dark-haired man behind the glass. The window squeaked open, and leaning down, sensei whispered, "If you come after school next week, perhaps I could arrange a field trip."

It was a bait. It definitely was; there was no other possibility. But the question was… a bait to what? To my own disgust, my heart accelerated, not from fear, but from a little hopeful anticipation this time.

"Hmph!" I pouted nonchalantly and quickly skidded away to walk home.

* * *

**Notes: **Wow! Thank you so much for all the reviews! This chapter is slightly shorter than the first one, but it's a quick update, so I hope it'll suffice. I'll be grateful for any comments/reviews/suggestions!


	3. Sakura finds a few missing pieces

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

**Line in the Sand:** There's a line they cannot cross… "There must be something more to him!" Lights danced wildly in Ino's eyes. "Don't say that about Uchiha-sensei! He's a respectable man, Ino!" I retorted back. I found out how wrong I was.

* * *

**Line in the Sand**

3. Puzzle

_(in which Sakura finds a few missing pieces)_

* * *

Most teenagers may agree that the weekend is the best part of a week. That was certainly true for me, no matter how academic-oriented I was. This weekend, however, felt too long, and my mind fluttered back to Uchiha-sensei's words.

On Monday, I _will _drop by his class after school.

In the meantime, I desperately wanted time to fly away, like it usually did. Fortunately, the hospital I had volunteered at during the summer still asked for me whenever my schedule was free.

Thus, on the wintry Saturday morning, I found myself inside a rather crowded hospital.

"Ah, Sakura-chan!" One of the nurses motioned me over to a slightly ajar door. "Can you watch over this patient for a few minutes?"

"Sure!" My eyes twinkled with relief from being given a task so quickly. I went inside and greeted cheerfully to a woman inside.

"Hello," she greeted back. "Are you a nurse?"

"No, I'm a student but I help out when I have time."

A faint smile spread on her rosy lips. The black curls of her hair spilled on her shoulder, and I couldn't help but gape at how beautiful she looked.

"Which school do you attend, then?"

"Konoha Secondary School… It's fairly close, actually. I believe it's about two blocks –"

"I know where it is," she cut me off, though I knew she hadn't meant to be rude.

A weary sigh escaped her, as her hand slowly and unconsciously reached down to rub her belly. It was then that I noticed that under the hospital blankets, there was a smooth bulge. She was pregnant.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and almost childishly, she asked, "Oh, then you must know Asuma!"

My heart quickened at the delight of realizing that she knew Asuma-sensei, too. "Of course!" I spoke up with joy, and added shyly, "He's my favourite teacher."

Another thin smile stretched out in her lovely pale face, that I couldn't life my gaze off her. Just as I vaguely wondered if, perhaps, her alluring smile seemed almost sad, the door swung open.

"Kurenai!" A tall, fine man stepped in, his loud, rugged breathing breaking the serene silence.

I turned to face a pleasant surprise; it was Asuma-sensei.

"Asuma," Kurenai assured him, "I'm fine. I feel much better now."

The creases of worry on his forehead dissolved away, and it was then that he finally noticed his student.

"Sakura." he nodded to me with a smile. Slowly, a light blush subtly cascaded onto his tanned face, as he confessed, "Kurenai is my wife."

My eyes widened with wonder. "Oh, congratulations!" Jumbled words escaped my mouth, and then a silly smile followed to show my sincerity.

We chattered a little, the three of us, until Uchiha-sensei's warning drifted into my mind. _'Why did Uchiha-sensei forbid me to speak about Asuma-sensei?'_ In fact, I had been thinking about it on a subconscious level ever since Asuma-sensei had come in. Perhaps, _he_ knew something about it.

"Asuma-sensei?" I began awkwardly. "Uhm, you know," I felt myself shift uncomfortably, weighing my body on one foot, then another, then back to the previous stance. "About Uchiha-sensei…"

The two adults who had been gazing at me intently a few seconds ago suddenly turned their heads away from me. Kurenai-san's head swung down, masking her face.

"Sakura…" Asuma-sensei motioned me toward the door, as he whispered, "Can we talk about this outside?"

Numbly, I nodded, and on cue, a nurse returned to assist Kurenai-san. What was it about Uchiha-sensei that caused her such distress?

Once outside, I followed my teacher to the waiting room. A curtain of silence fell between us for a long time, before he finally began. His brows were furrowed to a frown.

"Sakura," he started with a question. "Have you witnessed anything… indecent several days ago?"

Heat rose up to my face when images of Uchiha-sensei and Karin drifted to my mind. "If you're talking about Uchiha-sensei…"

The man beside me nodded weakly.

"Yes." A tiny voice, barely a whisper, confirmed him.

"Listen, Sakura." It was strange to see this admirable man nervously try to explain something so bizarre to me. "That had been… for me."

I scrunched up my brows to show that I didn't understand what he meant. Asuma-sensei seemed so reluctant to continue, but he elaborated, anyway.

"Sasuke is not an irresponsible man. That was the first and only time he had taken… such reckless actions."

'_Upon a student?'_ I thought incredulously. But a bigger question remained.

"But… why?" I asked softly. Curiosity was building inside me, at a rate quicker than I could perceive, but a strange sense of fear rushed inside, too. Perhaps I was better off not knowing the truth.

He carefully avoided my question as he continued on, "Sasuke had told me to come by his class that day, and when I did…" There was a faraway look in his eyes that told me he was speaking more to himself, remembering… "I saw him making out with a student. I was so shocked, of course, but he gazed at me, and I thought I saw a smirk. Before I turned to walk away, I caught a glimpse of pink behind the windows."

My head fell to the ground and a grim look formed on my face. I nodded slightly as I whispered, "Yep, that was me."

I snapped my head up and asked again, "But, why, sensei? Why did Sasuke do such a thing?" Neither of us noticed that I had subconsciously addressed my sensei by his first name, and when I did, a small blush threatened to break out. Asuma-sensei, on the other hand, stayed indifferent; that was probably the least of his concerns.

My mind spiraled rapidly and I conjured up an answer for myself. "It has to do with Kurenai-san," I guessed, and the lack of denial from the weary man told me it must be true.

Visioning the beautiful, but sad woman, I wondered vaguely on how she and Sasuke could be connected. Remembering her bulging stomach, a gripping fear and realization shot through me.

"D-did he get her pregnant?" My own stomach twisted with terror and dread, and I knew that I didn't really want an answer.

To my relief, however, Asuma-sensei blurted out incredulously, "No! That has nothing to do with it! Kurenai and I…" An embarrassing pause stopped his words for a second. "We're married and happy." He finished with finality.

I saw it in his eyes; Asuma-sensei was a truly honest man. That's why he was so uncomfortable right now, because he didn't want me to continue to force the truth out of him. Maybe I _was_ better off not knowing it.

All the little bubbles of anticipation and excitement I had in the morning had dissipated away by now. Suddenly, I did not want Monday to come. Dropping by Uchiha-sensei's class after school wasn't mandatory, especially for a stupid reason like a field trip. My heart was heavy with worry and confusion, but the curious part of me wanted to know more.

. . .

It was Monday morning, and my first class was English. My stomach whirled around with anxiety, but upon seeing Uchiha-sensei, the person I had been most dreading, I actually relaxed. He looked the same as ever, and acted like just as I had respected him… though that was in the past. But still… everything seemed normal.

I sincerely hoped that last week had merely been a nightmare.

As usual, my seat was at the very front, the very centre, and I listened intently to his lectures. Nothing seemed out of place at all and just as I was beginning to enjoy his teaching with no worries to cloud my mind, our gaze met.

The black pool of his eyes landed on mine for a brief second, and on instinct, my gaze fell down, toward my notes. My senses heightened instantly and I felt extremely conscious. For the rest of the class, I stared blankly at my notes, and planned to scurry away as soon as the bell rang.

Five minutes before the end of the class, Uchiha-sensei smiled warmly to the class. He must have sensed my distress, but despite everything, nothing appeared to be out of place.

"Good news, class." his onyx eyes sparkled under the lights, giving them a warm, red glow. "I might be able to plan a field trip soon." Before he could expand further, the class erupted with cheers, on the Monday morning, as if it was actually Friday after school.

"I'll update you guys on that later," he said, and my heart quickened that he might be looking at me. He had asked me to come after school today, after all. Swallowing thickly, I forced my gaze to look up at his, but the smiling teacher never once looked towards me.

A pang of disappointment shot through me. I shouldn't be disappointed! I didn't know if I should be feeling relieved instead, but honestly, I had no idea _what_ to feel.

Maybe, hopefully, last week really had been just a dream, even if my meeting with Asuma-sensei had proven it to be real.

. . .

Questions remained. My curiosity grew.

Stuffing down my inner panic, I made myself to the English room. The last bell had rung barely a minute ago. I'll go see him about the field trip, but I'll also pry some answers out of him.

Asuma-sensei had told me that Uchiha-sensei was not an irresponsible man, so he won't… _do _anything to me.

Right?

Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the wooden door, and let myself in.

"Ah, Sakura," Uchiha-sensei's eyes lit up, but he made no move to get up from behind his desk. Instead, one hand impatiently motioned me forward.

He still seemed nice, and I couldn't tell if he was still pretending to be the good teacher.

Without lifting his eyes off the monitor, he slipped a blank piece of paper toward me.

"Sensei?" I asked unsurely.

"Oh," finally, he lifted his eyes, but they never met mine. "Write down all the reasons why you want a field trip."

"Wha – why? Why am _I _the only one writing this?" Biting my lip, I complained. _'Why me?'_

In the most unexpected moment, when I found myself completely used to Uchiha-sensei's nice teacher act, his black eyes sharply lifted to mine. With a smirk, he explained, "The school wants one."

Uchiha-sensei doesn't smirk.

This wasn't "Uchiha-sensei"; it was Uchiha _Sasuke._

It was scary how quickly he changed.

Giving him the hardest glare I could muster, I exposed his plan, "So, _Sasuke,_ you're just loading _your _work onto me!"

There was mockery to my voice. Half of me feared for his reaction, and the other half just felt like being the daring, brave Sakura.

To my relief, he laughed. "So now you're calling me by my name?"

I bit my tongue in embarrassment.

"I can tell, Sakura," he went on coolly, "that you think I'm… bipolar or something."

'_Well, duh! Either that, or he's just really good at acting.'_

"You know what _I _think?" he leaned a little closer, and though I was standing up, and he was sitting down, he seemed to be in a much more imposing, intimidating position. "I think it's _you_ with the split personality!"

I frowned, he laughed. If that was his idea of a joke, well, it was far from being funny. Furious, I snatched the blank paper and sat on an empty desk to start listing the reasons.

. . .

The page was only a third filled in, before my concentration broke from a myriad of thoughts rushing in my mind. Through Asuma-sensei, I now knew that Uchiha-sensei had kissed Karin for a _reason_… (and not just recklessly making out with a student) Perhaps I could somehow dig the answers out of him.

"Sensei." One word abruptly broke the silence, but no response came.

"Why did you kiss her?" I played with the pencil in my hand.

"For fun." His answer was simple.

_Too_ simple.

"_I know that's not true!"_ I wanted to say, but I didn't want to give away anything, like the fact that I had talked with Asuma-sensei. Carefully, I spoke up again, "But you know… A teacher and a student can't really…"

His head turned toward me, and feeling his hard gaze on me, I stumbled with my words. "W-well, it's sort of a… taboo, isn't it? Like, forbidden..."

"Is that what you think?" He questioned sharply, but it was more of a statement, and I felt a mix of derision and frustration in the tone of his voice.

Where was he getting at? "Well, it can never work out." I shrugged, attempting to look indifferent, when I was really more panicky inside.

"Why not?" There was a bite to his voice, and I swore silently that I should never argue with Uchiha-sensei again.

Wait… _argue?_

"Sensei!" My eyes dramatically widened and I pushed away the paper. "Don't tell me you're serious about Karin?"

"I could care less about that girl," he muttered under his breath, but shooting me another sharp glare, he concluded with finality, "Discussion closed."

"Hmph!" I pouted, and crossed my arms.

"Go home, Sakura." He was getting up from his seat now, and returning to his fake good teacher tone, he smiled. "You've done enough for today. I won't need your help anymore."

Swiftly, his slender, yet masculine hands gather my sheet, and then he opened the door, motioning me out like a gentleman.

My instincts told me that if I left right now, everything would return to normal.

That's what I've wanted though, wasn't it? To face away from the hideous side of Uchiha-sensei, and return to admiring him for the great teacher he was (or, appeared to be).

Walk away now, and everything will be back to normal.

My feet carried me out the door, but just before he closed the door, I stuck my foot inside abruptly. He raised his eyebrows, and I thought I could see the start of a curious smirk.

But now wasn't the time for this.

Without thinking, I blurted out, "I've talked with Asuma-sensei!"

A silent fury spread on his face, but refusing to back down, I continued, "I also saw Kurenai-san!"

Suddenly, his anger dissolved away in the briefest of seconds, and his pale face turned even paler.

His mouth opened to speak, but after struggling for words, he could only ask, "What else do you know?"

'_Nothing else,'_ but I wasn't about to indulge him.

Crossing my arms, I daringly looked into his black eyes and declared, "I know _far_ more than you think!" Before he could question further, I stomped away as quickly as I could.

What have I gotten myself into?

* * *

**Notes**: Thank you very much readers & reviewers! I think the situation became more confusing than clarified, but the "truths" will start coming up, little by little! I'm sorry the length is getting slightly shorter and shorter...


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